Skating on History

23 Skating on History Every year, an amazing thing happens right in the middle of the city of Ottawa. What is it? North America's oldest operating canal becomes the world's longest outdoor skating rink. When I'm out there skating, I often think of the man who built this canal more than 150 years ago. His name was Colonel By. In 1812, there was a war between the United States and Canada. When the war ended, Canadians were afraid of another attack. They wanted a secure way to get supplies from Montreal to the central part of Canada. Although there were many lakes and rivers in the region, they were not connected. After much study, the people decided to build a series of canals to join the lakes and rivers. It was a huge engineering problem. The government hired Colonel By, and work began in 1826. There were many obstacles, and many people felt that the job of building the canal was impossible.

But Colonel By took up the challenge. For six years, he worked hard. He accomplished many great engineering feats for this time in history. The land was not level, so he had to build 46 locks to raise and lower boats. He also had to build 24 dams to hold water back. At the time, one of these dams was the highest dam in the world. Thousands of workers were injured or killed during construction. The government did not plan for enough money to build the canal. But the Colonel kept on building. In 1832, the canal was completed, and Colonel By made the first trip from end to end. However, because he had gone over budget, he was recalled to England. Even though the government had not provided enough money to build the canal, Colonel By was held responsible. He was disgraced and died a few years later. But in the end, the Colonel got the last laugh. Today, the canal that he built against all odds is a United Nations World Heritage site, and his name is honoured throughout Canada.